Chapter 1074: Chapter 1074

With the tightly shut door slowly opening, the scene behind it emerged into He Ao’s field of view.

The slightly dim light shone across the expansive hall, where small round tables extended in an orderly fashion from the entrance toward the innermost part of the hall.

There, a beautiful solid wood bar and a gilt enormous liquor cabinet were present, with thin light strips laid behind the cabinet, making each bottle of liquor crystal clear.

An elderly man in baggy pajamas was sitting behind the liquor cabinet at this moment, watching a lit screen.

And as the door opened, he slowly stood up.

Ruilin looked around with some confusion; obviously, the scene in this ’office’ was different from the one she remembered.

He stepped into the hall, which was as quiet and ordinary as can be, as if even the intense gunfire outside had quieted down at this moment.

But when He Ao stepped into this hall, he could sense some kind of sharp, invisible gaze that was suffocating, coming from all directions.

"Would you like a drink? Both of you."

The Elderly faced away from the two who entered, reaching from the liquor cabinet beside him and placing a bottle on the bar.

Feeling the tension and sharpness, He Ao walked calmly through the small round tables, sat down next to the bar stool, and said gently, "A ’Ordinance’, thank you."

The Elderly chuckled hoarsely, placing the bottle in his hand on the bar, and slowly turned around to get another bottle from the liquor cabinet.

At this time, Ruilin also walked over with hesitation and confusion. She seemed not to feel that ’invisible stare’ at all, but rather was puzzled about the changes in this ’office’.

"Child, it’s normal for you to feel puzzled,"

The stooped Elderly placed the new bottle on the bar, bowed his head, and picked up a wine glass beside him, "There’s a one-way transparent roller shutter glass wall in front of the office. If you open that wall, you won’t see the scene behind."

Hearing this, Ruilin turned back and indeed saw a large coil of semi-transparent glass-like roller blinds on the ceiling not far from the door.

Lowering that roller shutter would probably just enclose the front and back walls.

When she used to come here, the ’chief priest’ would meet her at the desk in front.

With a light click, the chief priest pried open the metal cap of the bottle in his hand, looking at Ruilin, and kindly asked, "What would you like to drink, child? ’Ordinance’ too?"

Ruilin looked at the Elderly in front of her. Each time she had come here before, the chief priest always prepared a ’Ordinance’ for her.

Her gaze slowly moved away, falling on the metal bottle cap the Elderly had thrown into the bin, remaining silent for a moment.

Finally, she nodded gently, "Hmm."

At the same time, she saw the chief priest pour liquor from the two bottles in his hand, beginning to mix them together.

This was the first time she saw the process of making ’Ordinance’. On the bar outside, ’Ordinance’ was stored in a sealed large wooden barrel, poured by the bartender.

The Elderly quickly prepared two drinks, squeezed a bit of lime into them, added three ice cubes, and passed them to the two.

He Ao reached out for the drink, sipping it gently.

Compared to the one he had before, this drink had a richer aroma at the front, more reserved fire at the back, and some slightly lingering tartness in the liquor.

And Ruilin beside He Ao did not pick up the glass in front of her, just silently observing the surroundings of the bar.

The Elderly also mixed a drink for himself, looked at He Ao, and said with a smile, "Aren’t you afraid that I would have slipped something into your drink?"

"Under normal circumstances, I would respect the honor of a bartender."

He Ao shrugged slightly, placing the glass back on the table.

As soon as he entered the door, he had marked the Elderly, and he knew exactly what was on his mind.

The Elderly gazed at He Ao, sighing gently, "I don’t know how you arrived at the City of Rong Guang, but your spirit is admirable."

"What exactly is this?"

At that moment, Ruilin looked up, glancing at the screen beside the Elderly, and asked involuntarily.

Right now, the screen was divided into numerous small areas, countless people in grey-brown clothes shuttling through these areas.

They were holding guns, fiercely fighting against those well-dressed people from the ’Ordinance Department’.

"This is ’surveillance’, child,"

The Elderly glanced at the screen, speaking calmly, "Your memory has been obscured by the City of Rong Guang; it’s normal not to recognize this."

"Are those ’lights’ that are on also within the realm of what I don’t recognize?"

Ruilin raised her head, her gaze moving towards the bright lights above the liquor cabinet, asking once again.

The lights seemed to be used to create a certain ambiance, but they were the brightest she had seen in the city.

"These are ’electric lights’."

The Elderly said slowly, "They are different from the lights that use the waste gas from food factories for energy supply."

"Why can’t we use electric lights?"

Ruilin asked quietly, she had walked every corner of this city countless nights, she was well aware of what sufficient light represented.

But soon, she seemed to find the answer, speaking hoarsely, "Because we are ’livestock’?"

As she spoke, scattered thoughts and memories surfaced in her mind. She whispered, "It’s like how the owner of a ranch wouldn’t install lights unless they needed them, right?"

This time, the Elderly did not answer; he simply calmly raised his prepared cocktail, took a sip, and then said softly, "Child, you are exceptional. I’ve watched you grow step by step; on many nights, I’ve considered whether I should let you come into contact with the Transcendent."

He placed his cocktail on the table, "If you can repent now, you can be the head of the Ordinance Department, all the rights of the Ordinance Department will be your responsibility. You didn’t like the person in the blue robe; now he’s dead, and you will take his place,"

He gazed at Ruilin, "I will open the door of the Transcendent for you, and you will become the actual manager of this city."

Ruilin looked at the figures in grey-brown garb holding guns on the monitor.

"Child, you should know that excessive kindness cannot manage anything well,"

The Elderly took another gentle sip of his drink and said slowly, "The moment they took up guns, their fate was already sealed."

Ruilin lowered her head, her eyes fixed on the stooped Elderly, "I want to know, was Riley truly taken by the Divine Envoy?"

"She is not related to you by blood, child,"

The Elderly put down his cocktail glass, raised his head, looking at Ruilin, and said in a hoarse voice, "When you become the manager of this city, you will have many choices."

Ruilin watched the Elderly before her; she knew that this was tantamount to an acknowledgment of her question.

"High Priest, a shepherd’s dog cannot protect even one lamb from their master,"

Ruilin looked at the Elderly in front of her, "Because it is also just a ’livestock’ with a slightly higher status."

"You don’t need to protect those lambs, you are not the same as them."

The Elderly sighed, looking at Ruilin, "You have a great talent. You could become a ’master’ and receive the radiance of Rong Guang."

"If becoming a ’master’ means treating my own kind as livestock,"

Ruilin gripped the bronze sword in her hand tightly, "I cannot accept that."

"Child, it seems that you have made up your mind. You are as exceptional as I thought, but excessive ’kindness’ will only bring you a fate of destruction."

The Elderly sighed, his aged and hunched body slowly straightening, sinewy muscles rippling across him, his elderly skin tensing in that moment; he seemed rapidly becoming ’younger’.

A kind of invisible pressure spread, and in that instant, Ruilin felt as if her chest was being crushed by a giant stone, even losing the ability to breathe.

Her face turned temporarily red due to the lack of oxygen, but even so, she did not speak up to deny her choice.

The sound of a fingertip lightly tapping the table surfaced in the silent hall.

The sound was not loud, just a light tap, but it rang so crisply and loudly in Ruilin’s ears, as if it struck upon her soul.

The oppressive ’giant stone’ crushing her chest crumbled at that tap, instantly dissolving into nothingness.

Tiny beads of sweat instantly sprouted on every inch of the woman’s skin, she gasped for air, like a drowning person hauled out of the sea, greedily breathing in the essence of life.

The Elderly standing behind the bar turned his head to look at the ’young man’ with one hand on the bar and the other holding a glass of wine, smiling and asking,

"So this ’outsider’ sir, did you also come for that missing lovely young lady?"

As if an invisible ripple washed over He Ao’s face, gently blowing his hair, passing before him.

And behind He Ao, the round tables abruptly shattered, ’drawing’ a long line all the way to the end of the hall.

"I can feel the power contained within you, you could easily defeat the one in the blue robe, that’s quite incredible."

The Elderly watched He Ao, continuing to smile and said,

"But unfortunately, this is the City of Rong Guang. You will never understand how powerful the Grace of the City of Rong Guang is. It’s a power beyond the comprehension of ordinary people, a Grace from the Destroyer K."

At this moment, the old man who now appeared like a burly middle-aged man lifted his head to gaze at He Ao, "You possess great power, and if you are willing to stay here, I believe the City of Rong Guang would be willing to accept you."

Fine cracks spread instantaneously across the glass He Ao held in his hand, quickly covering the entire glass.

Under the colorful lights, the cracked glass seemed like layers of intricate snowflakes, reflecting a crystal-clear array of colors.

"I am a straightforward person with just one question,"

He Ao slowly raised the sparkling glass to his lips and drained the last of the liquor, looking at the elderly man with a smile, "Where is the path to the ’upper echelon’? Also,"

He placed the glass down on the table and smiled, "That was indeed a good drink."

Accompanying his words, a crisp sound exploded on the table, and the entire glass shattered violently into fine grains of glass sand, scattering across the bar.

The glass had already shattered within those invisible sound waves, but when it ’collapsed’ was determined by the person holding the glass.

"Unfortunately, only those chosen by Rong Guang are permitted to ascend to the upper echelon,"

The elderly man raised his hand, lightly brushing across the glass debris on the table.

In that instant, the countless shattered glass remnants suddenly burst apart like torrential rain bullets, abruptly ’pouring’ towards He Ao.

The terrifying force ripped through the air, emitting a piercing screech.

Ruilin watched this scene blankly, ignorant of how powerful this move was, but she could feel that if the blue-robed figure from before were here, he would be easily pierced by these shards and reduced to a pile of flesh.

She wanted to cry out a warning, but the glass shards were too fast, far exceeding her reaction limit. Before she could speak, those flying glass fragments had already sprayed out, about to reach He Ao’s body.

But in that instant, as if some invisible brilliance flashed, the splintered pieces did not strike at He Ao, but instead flew back suddenly, with even greater speed than when they burst out, towards the old man behind the bar.

Seeing this, the elderly man immediately drew back, leaping to the side.

The bottles lining the entire liquor cabinet were abruptly penetrated; the rich liqueur splattered down like raindrops, and the heavy cabinet, too, was shattered, tipping forward.

In an instant, Ruilin felt her shoulder being grabbed at random, and then her vision tumbled, landing her body in front of the office door.

She looked up and ahead, only to see that the young man had stood up from his seat at some unknown point, lifting his hand as if he was holding some invisible sword hilt.

Then, she saw the young man raise his palm and draw across the metal edge of the toppling liquor cabinet with some invisible blade he held in his hand.

Sparks splattered in a moment from the edge of the cabinet, instantly igniting the surging surrounding liquor.

Flames spread like a tide through the air, assaulting the elderly man who had already leaped to the side.

Watching the fire wave approach, there was no expression on the old man’s face.

Flames of such intensity could hardly harm a strong Transcendent like him.

He lifted his hand, swiftly regulating his body, and opened his mouth, seemingly prepared to ’blow’ these flames back.

However, in the corner of his field of view he failed to notice, invisible glass shards concealed within the flames, rushed toward him at extreme speed.

The moment he opened his mouth, those glass shards burst out from the flames, instantly penetrating his chest.

Immediately following, a figure wielding a sword swiftly moved through the surging flames, lifting the Shadowless Sword in hand, severing his head with one stroke before he could react to the injury.

Back when he was holding the glass, He Ao had already infused his Divine Sense into it.

The glass shards thrown by the ’Divine Envoy’ were mostly deflected back by his direct use of the Shadowless Sword, while a small portion was controlled with Divine Sense, concealed within the splashing liquor.

Liquor fell at the young man’s feet, igniting surging flames, spreading towards all directions.

Ruilin in the corner watched the young man standing amidst the flames, momentarily dazed.

No, that’s not right.

She quickly spotted something amiss; the young man’s actions didn’t cease. Instead, he lifted his head, looking up above.

At some unknown time, the entire hall seemed to ’tremble,’ the firm ceiling shedding pieces of cement and dust rapidly, revealing the fresh red pulsating flesh underneath.

Then, the walls, the floor, every architectural element visible to the naked eye within the hall began to crack.

"Outsider, your power is strong,"

The hoarse and sharp voice arose from all directions, "But you’ll never know how mighty the glory of ’Destroyer K’ is; a divine grace given, an eternal and undying power."

Ruilin lifted her head, staring in terror at the scene before her; the sight far exceeded her anticipation.

She had never thought that the entire ’hall’ itself was the ’high priest’.

Subconsciously, she lowered her head to look at the young man standing amid the flames.

This time, the young man made no movement, simply bowing his head as if lost in thought.

Massive tentacles stretched out from all around the hall, their limbs unfolding to reveal mouths resembling those of humans.

A sharp screech instantly reverberated throughout the room.

Those invisible sound waves merged together, causing the flames flowing across the ground to tremble violently, ultimately concentrating at the young man’s position.

The young man’s body trembled almost imperceptibly as a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

Yet he still stood there, seemingly deep in contemplation.

The massive limbs moved, rearranging into a new formation, and once again ’mouths’ opened.

This time, a flash of light suddenly burst forth from the young man’s hand, severing several tentacles in succession, before a sword plunged into the wall at the very back.

The tentacles all around trembled at the motion.

He Ao raised his hand.

The high priest’s previous human body had two energy convergence points, both of which he had destroyed, those two were quite obvious, quite easy to demolish.

The wound in the wall that had been pierced trembled slightly, the invisible blade flying back into He Ao’s hand.

Unalike that humanoid body, this ’monster’ that enveloped the entire hall had flesh piled in chaotic disorder, its internal energy pathways abnormally complex, and the energy convergence points were not prominent, resulting in these dense patterns actually covering up the true energy convergence points.

It was somewhat like a doctor taking a pulse; a thin person’s pulse could be felt immediately upon reaching out, but for an overweight person, one would have to search for a while.

He Ao was now following those chaotic energy pathways, searching for the monster’s real ’energy convergence points’.

After a brief pause, the tentacles surrounding He Ao began to move again, opening their mouths after changing formation.

At this time, He Ao raised his hand again, and sword light burst forth in an instant.

The invisible blade, like mowing grass, cleaved a swath of tentacles in half, piercing into the wall by the doorway.

As the monster moved, the energy inside it ebbed and flowed like a tide, and its energy convergence point would also flash more intensely.

That was when its energy convergence point was most apparent.

He Ao retracted the Shadowless Sword.

Judging from these energy pathways, there should be one more.

After being pierced a second time, the surrounding tentacles fell into a momentary silence, no longer moving.

The entire hall strangely quieted down at this moment.

He Ao gazed at those dense energy pathways, carefully deducing the location of the last energy convergence point.

At a certain moment, he suddenly realized something, immediately gripping the blade in hand, cutting through the surging flames, and leaped abruptly.

Almost at the same time he jumped, a huge tentacle rose from under his feet, its top opening wide, trying to bite down where he had just been.

But just as that huge mouth was about to close, He Ao in the sky had already descended, the sharp blade not giving the tentacle any time to react.

Instantly from top to bottom, the sword split the entire tentacle in two, vertically.

Among the aroma of fine wine, the collapsing tentacle fell into the blazing fire.

He Ao landed amidst the flames, looking towards the surrounding buildings that were already violently trembling, on the verge of collapse.

The monster’s last energy convergence point was right under his feet.

In the intangible void, a certain special connection spread out.

It seemed as if the city was reclaiming the power that belonged to it.

After a brief contemplation, He Ao reached into his pocket and slowly drew out the yellow crystal.